Irvine 2014 Springhill Merlot

There is a lot of very average merlot in the Australian marketplace. We got poor clones or some such excuse. Fortunately new clones are being planted but in the meantime long-time market leader Irvine Wines (now under new ownership but with Joanne Irvine still making the wines) leads the pack when it comes to good-value merlot with this impressive entry-level wine that is designed to be drunk over the next four years. The key to this wine's appeal is its immediate soft slurpability. No difficult questions are posed; it is not a wine that demands much thought or analysis, but it does offer soft, plummy flavour with just the merest hints of spice and oak. Fun and affordable. $18-20. www.irvinewines.com.au